151 And Samuel saith unto Saul, 'Me did Jehovah send to anoint thee for king over His people, over Israel; and now, hearken to the voice of the words of Jehovah: 2 'Thus said Jehovah of Hosts, I have looked after that which Amalek did to Israel, that which he laid for him in the way in his going up out of Egypt. 3 Now, go, and thou hast smitten Amalek, and devoted all that it hath, and thou hast no pity on it, and hast put to death from man unto woman, from infant unto suckling, from ox unto sheep, from camel unto ass.' 4 And Saul summoneth the people, and inspecteth them in Telaim, two hundred thousand footmen, and ten thousand 'are' men of Judah. 5 And Saul cometh in unto a city of Amalek, and layeth wait in a valley; 6 and Saul saith unto the Kenite, 'Go, turn aside, go down from the midst of Amalek, lest I consume thee with it, and thou didst kindness with all the sons of Israel, in their going up out of Egypt;' and the Kenite turneth aside from the midst of Amalek. 7 And Saul smiteth Amalek from Havilah—thy going in to Shur, which 'is' on the front of Egypt, 8 and he catcheth Agag king of Amalek alive, and all the people he hath devoted by the mouth of the sword; 9 and Saul hath pity—also the people—on Agag, and on the best of the flock, and of the herd, and of the seconds, and on the lambs, and on all that 'is' good, and have not been willing to devote them; and all the work, despised and wasted—it they devoted.
10 And the word of Jehovah is unto Samuel, saying, 11 'I have repented that I caused Saul to reign for king, for he hath turned back from after Me, and My words he hath not performed;' and it is displeasing to Samuel, and he crieth unto Jehovah all the night. 12 And Samuel riseth early to meet Saul in the morning, and it is declared to Samuel, saying, 'Saul hath come in to Carmel, and lo, he is setting up to himself a monument, and goeth round, and passeth over, and goeth down to Gilgal.' 13 And Samuel cometh in unto Saul, and Saul saith to him, 'Blessed 'art' thou of Jehovah; I have performed the word of Jehovah.' 14 And Samuel saith, 'And what 'is' the noise of this flock in mine ears—and the noise of the herd which I am hearing?' 15 And Saul saith, 'From Amalek they have brought them, because the people had pity on the best of the flock, and of the herd, in order to sacrifice to Jehovah thy God, and the remnant we have devoted.' 16 And Samuel saith unto Saul, 'Desist, and I declare to thee that which Jehovah hath spoken unto me to-night;' and he saith to him, 'Speak.' 17 And Samuel saith, 'Art not thou, if thou 'art' little in thine own eyes, head of the tribes of Israel? and Jehovah doth anoint thee for king over Israel, 18 and Jehovah sendeth thee in the way, and saith, Go, and thou hast devoted the sinners, the Amalekite, and fought against them till they are consumed; 19 and why hast thou not hearkened to the voice of Jehovah—and dost fly unto the spoil, and dost do the evil thing in the eyes of Jehovah?' 20 And Saul saith unto Samuel, 'Because—I have hearkened to the voice of Jehovah, and I go in the way which Jehovah hath sent me, and bring in Agag king of Amalek, and Amalek I have devoted; 21 and the people taketh of the spoil of the flock and herd, the first part of the devoted thing, for sacrifice to Jehovah thy God in Gilgal.' 22 And Samuel saith, 'Hath Jehovah had delight in burnt-offerings and sacrifices as 'in' hearkening to the voice of Jehovah? lo, hearkening than sacrifice is better; to give attention than fat of rams; 23 for a sin of divination 'is' rebellion, and iniquity and teraphim 'is' stubbornness; because thou hast rejected the word of Jehovah, He also doth reject thee from 'being' king.'
24 And Saul saith unto Samuel, 'I have sinned, for I passed over the command of Jehovah, and thy words; because I have feared the people, I also hearken to their voice; 25 and now, bear, I pray thee, with my sin, and turn back with me, and I bow myself to Jehovah.' 26 And Samuel saith unto Saul, 'I do not turn back with thee; for thou hast rejected the word of Jehovah, and Jehovah doth reject thee from being king over Israel.' 27 And Samuel turneth round to go, and he layeth hold on the skirt of his upper robe—and it is rent! 28 And Samuel saith unto him, 'Jehovah hath rent the kingdom of Israel from thee to-day, and given it to thy neighbour who is better than thou; 29 and also, the Pre-eminence of Israel doth not lie nor repent, for He 'is' not a man to be penitent.' 30 And he saith, 'I have sinned; now, honour me, I pray thee, before the elders of my people, and before Israel, and turn back with me; and I have bowed myself to Jehovah thy God.' 31 And Samuel turneth back after Saul, and Saul boweth himself to Jehovah;
32 and Samuel saith, 'Bring ye nigh unto me Agag king of Amalek,' and Agag cometh unto him daintily, and Agag saith, 'Surely the bitterness of death hath turned aside.' 33 And Samuel saith, 'As thy sword bereaved women—so is thy mother bereaved above women;' and Samuel heweth Agag in pieces before Jehovah in Gilgal. 34 And Samuel goeth to Ramath, and Saul hath gone unto his house—to Gibeah of Saul. 35 And Samuel hath not added to see Saul till the day of his death, for Samuel mourned for Saul, and Jehovah repented that He had caused Saul to reign over Israel.
161 And Jehovah saith unto Samuel, 'Till when art thou mourning for Saul, and I have rejected him from reigning over Israel? fill thy horn with oil, and go, I send thee unto Jesse the Beth-Lehemite, for I have seen among his sons for Myself a king. 2 And Samuel saith, 'How do I go? when Saul hath heard, then he hath slain me.' And Jehovah saith, 'A heifer of the herd thou dost take in thy hand, and hast said, To sacrifice to Jehovah I have come; 3 and thou hast called for Jesse in the sacrifice, and I cause thee to know that which thou dost do, and thou hast anointed to Me him of whom I speak unto thee.' 4 And Samuel doth that which Jehovah hath spoken, and cometh in to Beth-Lehem, and the elders of the city tremble to meet him, and 'one' saith, 'Is thy coming peace?' 5 and he saith, 'Peace; to sacrifice to Jehovah I have come, sanctify yourselves, and ye have come in with me to the sacrifice;' and he sanctifieth Jesse and his sons, and calleth them to the sacrifice.
6 And it cometh to pass, in their coming in, that he seeth Eliab, and saith, 'Surely, before Jehovah 'is' His anointed.' 7 And Jehovah saith unto Samuel, 'Look not unto his appearance, and unto the height of his stature, for I have rejected him; for 'it is' not as man seeth—for man looketh at the eyes, and Jehovah looketh at the heart.' 8 And Jesse calleth unto Abinadab, and causeth him to pass by before Samuel; and he saith, 'Also on this Jehovah hath not fixed.' 9 And Jesse causeth Shammah to pass by, and he saith, 'Also on this Jehovah hath not fixed.' 10 And Jesse causeth seven of his sons to pass by before Samuel, and Samuel saith to Jesse, 'Jehovah hath not fixed on these.' 11 And Samuel saith unto Jesse, 'Are the young men finished?' and he saith, 'Yet hath been left the youngest; and lo, he delighteth himself among the flock;' and Samuel saith unto Jesse, 'Send and take him, for we do not turn round till his coming in hither.' 12 And he sendeth, and bringeth him in, and he 'is' ruddy, with beauty of eyes, and of good appearance; and Jehovah saith, 'Rise, anoint him, for this 'is' he.' 13 And Samuel taketh the horn of oil, and anointeth him in the midst of his brethren, and prosper over David doth the Spirit of Jehovah from that day and onwards; and Samuel riseth and goeth to Ramath.
14 And the Spirit of Jehovah turned aside from Saul, and a spirit of sadness from Jehovah terrified him; 15 and the servants of Saul say unto him, 'Lo, we pray thee, a spirit of sadness 'from' God is terrifying thee; 16 let our lord command, we pray thee, thy servants before thee, they seek a skilful man, playing on a harp, and it hath come to pass, in the spirit of sadness 'from' God being upon thee, that he hath played with his hand, and 'it is' well with thee.' 17 And Saul saith unto his servants, 'Provide, I pray you, for me a man playing well—then ye have brought 'him' in unto me.' 18 And one of the servants answereth and saith, 'Lo, I have seen a son of Jesse the Beth-Lehemite, skilful in playing, and a mighty virtuous man, and a man of battle, and intelligent in word, and a man of form, and Jehovah 'is' with him.' 19 And Saul sendeth messengers unto Jesse, and saith, 'Send unto me David thy son, who 'is' with the flock.' 20 And Jesse taketh an ass, 'with' bread, and a bottle of wine, and one kid of the goats, and sendeth by the hand of David his son unto Saul. 21 And David cometh in unto Saul, and standeth before him, and he loveth him greatly; and he is a bearer of his weapons. 22 And Saul sendeth unto Jesse, saying, 'Let David, I pray thee, stand before me, for he hath found grace in mine eyes.' 23 And it hath come to pass, in the spirit of 'sadness from' God being on Saul, that David hath taken the harp, and played with his hand, and Saul hath refreshment and gladness, and the spirit of sadness hath turned aside from off him.
25 And lo, a certain lawyer stood up, trying him, and saying, 'Teacher, what having done, life age-during shall I inherit?' 26 And he said unto him, 'In the law what hath been written? how dost thou read?' 27 And he answering said, 'Thou shalt love the Lord thy God out of all thy heart, and out of all thy soul, and out of all thy strength, and out of all thy understanding, and thy neighbour as thyself.' 28 And he said to him, 'Rightly thou didst answer; this do, and thou shalt live.' 29 And he, willing to declare himself righteous, said unto Jesus, 'And who is my neighbour?' 30 and Jesus having taken up 'the word', said, 'A certain man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among robbers, and having stripped him and inflicted blows, they went away, leaving 'him' half dead. 31 'And by a coincidence a certain priest was going down in that way, and having seen him, he passed over on the opposite side; 32 and in like manner also, a Levite, having been about the place, having come and seen, passed over on the opposite side. 33 'But a certain Samaritan, journeying, came along him, and having seen him, he was moved with compassion, 34 and having come near, he bound up his wounds, pouring on oil and wine, and having lifted him up on his own beast, he brought him to an inn, and was careful of him; 35 and on the morrow, going forth, taking out two denaries, he gave to the innkeeper, and said to him, Be careful of him, and whatever thou mayest spend more, I, in my coming again, will give back to thee. 36 'Who, then, of these three, seemeth to thee to have become neighbour of him who fell among the robbers?' 37 and he said, 'He who did the kindness with him,' then Jesus said to him, 'Be going on, and thou be doing in like manner.'
38 And it came to pass, in their going on, that he entered into a certain village, and a certain woman, by name Martha, did receive him into her house, 39 and she had also a sister, called Mary, who also, having seated herself beside the feet of Jesus, was hearing the word, 40 and Martha was distracted about much serving, and having stood by him, she said, 'Sir, dost thou not care that my sister left me alone to serve? say then to her, that she may partake along with me.' 41 And Jesus answering said to her, 'Martha, Martha, thou art anxious and disquieted about many things, 42 but of one thing there is need, and Mary the good part did choose, that shall not be taken away from her.'
(Read Luke 10:25-37)
If we speak of eternal life, and the way to it, in a careless manner, we take the name of God in vain. No one will ever love God and his neighbour with any measure of pure, spiritual love, who is not made a partaker of converting grace. But the proud heart of man strives hard against these convictions. Christ gave an instance of a poor Jew in distress, relieved by a good Samaritan. This poor man fell among thieves, who left him about to die of his wounds. He was slighted by those who should have been his friends, and was cared for by a stranger, a Samaritan, of the nation which the Jews most despised and detested, and would have no dealings with. It is lamentable to observe how selfishness governs all ranks; how many excuses men will make to avoid trouble or expense in relieving others. But the true Christian has the law of love written in his heart. The Spirit of Christ dwells in him; Christ's image is renewed in his soul. The parable is a beautiful explanation of the law of loving our neighbour as ourselves, without regard to nation, party, or any other distinction. It also sets forth the kindness and love of God our Saviour toward sinful, miserable men. We were like this poor, distressed traveller. Satan, our enemy, has robbed us, and wounded us: such is the mischief sin has done us. The blessed Jesus had compassion on us. The believer considers that Jesus loved him, and gave his life for him, when an enemy and a rebel; and having shown him mercy, he bids him go and do likewise. It is the duty of us all , in our places, and according to our ability, to succour, help, and relieve all that are in distress and necessity.
(Read Luke 10:38-42)
A good sermon is not the worse for being preached in a house; and the visits of our friends should be so managed, as to make them turn to the good of their souls. Sitting at Christ's feet, signifies readiness to receive his word, and submission to the guidance of it. Martha was providing for the entertainment of Christ, and those that came with him. Here were respect to our Lord Jesus and right care of her household affairs. But there was something to be blamed. She was for much serving; plenty, variety, and exactness. Worldly business is a snare to us, when it hinders us from serving God, and getting good to our souls. What needless time is wasted, and expense often laid out, even in entertaining professors of the gospel! Though Martha was on this occasion faulty, yet she was a true believer, and in her general conduct did not neglect the one thing needful. The favour of God is needful to our happiness; the salvation of Christ is needful to our safety. Where this is attended to, all other things will be rightly pursued. Christ declared, Mary hath chosen the good part. For one thing is needful, this one thing that she has done, to give up herself to the guidance of Christ. The things of this life will be taken away from us, at the furthest, when we shall be taken away from them; but nothing shall separate from the love of Christ, and a part in that love. Men and devils cannot take it away from us, and God and Christ will not. Let us mind the one thing needful more diligently.
